1. Field of the Invention:
The invention relates to heat exchange and more particularly to heat exchange including a rotary movable element.
2. Description of the prior art:
Various types of heat exchange devices have been available to the prior art. One class of heat exchange devices included devices having a cylindrically shaped rotor which was rotated in an ambient fluid relative to a frame. Fluid conducting conduits connected to a heat source were mounted to the rotor. Heated fluid from the heat source would pass through the rotor and return to the heat source. Upon rotation of the rotation of the rotor the fluid moved through the conduit and exchanged heat with the ambient fluid as the conduit rotated through the ambient fluid. These rotary heat exchange devices never obtained a wide acceptance since the efficiency of these heat exchangers was lower than the conventional non-rotating heat exchangers. With the entire world facing an energy shortage, the art requires a heat exchanger of higher efficiency so that the world may use the existing energy supply more efficiently. Therefore an object of this invention is to provide a heat exchanger which overcomes the aforementioned disadvantages of the prior art and provides a heat exchanger which is highly efficient to enable the world to make better use of the limited resources of energy.
Another object of this invention is to provide a heat exchanger wherein a single heat conduction paths extends a plurality of times between a first and a second end of the rotor enabling a more efficient transfer of heat between the conduction path and an ambient fluid.
Another object of this invention is to provide a heat exchanger having a first fan member for forcing ambient fluid through apertures in the rotor ends to direct the ambient fluid in proximity to the conduction path of the heat exchanger.
Another object of this invention is to provide a heat exchanger having a plurality of annular fins having components thereon for forcing ambient fluid past the conduction path of the heat exchanger to enable the transfer of heat between the conduction path and the ambient fluid.
Another object of this invention is to provide a highly efficient heat exchanger which can be mass produced to meet the needs of the energy shortage.
Another object of this invention is to provide a heat exchanger which may be operated from a fluid source or an electrical source.
Another object of this invention is to provide a heat exchanger which is reliable and inexpensive to manufacture.